Optimism and Gratitude

Optimism and Gratitude - The Psychology and Philosophy of Happiness
A great video to begin understanding how optimism and gratitude impact your life.

Is a Happy Life Different from a Meaningful One?

Is a Happy Life Different from a Meaningful One?

         Recently I began taking an 8-week online course from the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley. Happiness no doubt is important but what can it do for us in terms of reaching our full potential? How can we encourage “meaningfulness” in our own lives? Does being “happy” help children learn? What does happiness really mean? 

         “Researchers first need to define it. Many of them use the term interchangeably with “subjective well-being,” which they measure by simply asking people to report how satisfied they feel with their own lives and how much positive and negative emotion they’re experiencing. In her 2007 book The How of Happiness, positive psychology researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky elaborates, describing happiness as “the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile.”

         Based on research data suggests there are 5 major differences between a happy life and a meaningful life.  What do you think?

·      Happy people satisfy their wants and needs, but that seems largely irrelevant to a meaningful life. Therefore, health, wealth, and ease in life were all related to happiness, but not meaning.

·   Happiness involves being focused on the present, whereas meaningfulness involves thinking more about the past, present, and future—and the relationship between them. In addition, happiness was seen as fleeting, while meaningfulness seemed to last longer.

·   Meaningfulness is derived from giving to other people; happiness comes from what they give to you. Although social connections were linked to both happiness and meaning, happiness was connected more to the benefits one receives from social relationships, especially friendships, while meaningfulness was related to what one gives to others—for example, taking care of children. Along these lines, self-described “takers” were happier than self-described “givers,” and spending time with friends was linked to happiness more than meaning, whereas spending more time with loved ones was linked to meaning but not happiness.

·   Meaningful lives involve stress and challenges. Higher levels of worry, stress, and anxiety were linked to higher meaningfulness but lower happiness, which suggests that engaging in challenging or difficult situations that are beyond oneself or one’s pleasures promotes meaningfulness but not happiness.

·   Self-expression is important to meaning but not happiness. Doing things to express oneself and caring about personal and cultural identity were linked to a meaningful life but not a happy one. For example, considering oneself to be wise or creative was associated with meaning but not happiness.

Want to know more?  Check it out...

http://www.pursuit-of-happiness.org/science-of-happiness/positive-thinking/